1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to diagnosis of infection and more particularly to a method and apparatus for external measurement of the pH of vaginal secretion.
2. Background Art
Vaginal infections may be divided into two general categories, yeast infections which cause acid secretions with a pH below about 4.5 and non-yeast infections which cause secretions with a pH generally above 4.5.
A number of over the counter medicines are now available for treatment of vaginal yeast infections. The signs and symptoms of yeast infections are not readily distinguishable from other infections, although they comprise less than half of the infections Consequently, patients too often resort to self treatment with yeast medicine when it cannot possibly be effective. This may dangerously delay effective treatment.
U.S. Pat. No. 2,664,879 issued Jan. 5, 1954 to Hardy and U.S. Pat. No. 5,063,930 issued Nov. 12, 1991 to Nucci disclose devices for measuring vaginal pH internally with pH indicators carried on an instrument inserted into the vagina.
These have several disadvantages. Women generally object to any internal instrumentation. The sensitive tissues are vulnerable to reaction with many materials such as indicators. Sterility is a further concern. They do not lend themselves to home health care in conjunction with the over the counter medicine used for yeast infections.